Richmond Steel clearing out; movie cinema in the works
From the Richmond Times-Dispatch comes news that Richmond Steel will be vacating their North Boulevard site at the end of July, and plans are moving forward to convert the Art Deco building into a 16-screen cinema and shopping complex:
Richmond Steel Inc. is vacating its steel-assembly building, built in 1907 at North Boulevard and Leigh Street, and moving into new quarters in Chester by July 23.
The move will clear the way for Bow Tie Partners, a New York development firm, to convert the Richmond Steel building into Movieland at Boulevard Square.
Bow Tie Partners said Boulevard Square will open next year and feature a 16-screen, stadium-style cinema and 53,000 square feet of restaurant, retail and entertainment space available for lease.
Does anybody know anything about Bow Tie Parters’ previous development track record? I’d welcome a movie theater in the neighborhood, but what assurances do we have that Richmond isn’t going to end up with another Sixth Street Marketplace?
Tim -
I wrote a bit about them back in October on Buttermilk & Molasses. I poked around for news about the firm — they run a large handful (115) of screens along the East Coast and seem to have a good track record, but I don’t know much else about them.
I had the pleasure of meeting the owners of Movieland at a commerical real estate meeting about 3 months ago. More can be learned about them at http://www.bowtiepartners.com/
I specifically asked about the quality of their development and parking and believe this will be a first class complex. They only go into city areas doing a lot of renovations and the goal is to be a part of turning around areas with much promise.